The 19-floor, 180-roomhotel, in a half an acre property next to Liberty Plaza is expected to open by mid-2013. Mővenpick Hotels and Resorts is also looking for opportunity to run a resort elsewhere in the island, an official said.

The Swiss hotel chain Mövenpick Hotels & Resorts has finalized a management deal to operate an upscale hotel in Kollupitiya area of the capital Colombo. The Swiss chain said in a statement that it has secured a management deal to operate a 180-room hotel in a half an acre property next to Liberty Plaza in Colombo. The 19-floor hotel, owned by Sri Lanka's SoftLogic Holdings, expected to open by mid-2013.

Andreas Mattmüller, chief operating officer of Mövenpick Hotels & Resorts, Middle East and Asia, said the company is very excited about opening in Colombo, which is in line with its development strategy to secure projects in key Asian markets. "It's a great opportunity to expand our presence in such an emerging travel destination," he said.

The group has a 12-year deal with options to extend another 10 years with Softlogic. Softlogic has interests in electronics and healthcare. Muller says Movenpick's Colombo hotel will command prices of about 200 dollars a night when it is completed in two years time.

Mővenpick Hotels and Resorts is also looking for opportunity to run a resort elsewhere in the island, an official said. "Any resort hotel would complement the city hotel here in Sri Lanka," Andreas Muller said. "We are known for resort hotels. We run big resort hotels of between 500 to 600 guest rooms. "We are looking at opportunities, when an opportunity presents itself."

Mövenpick Hotels & Resorts, a hotel management company with over 12,000 employees, has over 90 hotels existing or under construction in 26 countries.